The Responsible Outrageous Fences

The Responsible Outrageous Fences (Stemelzarusthuth in the dwarven tongue) is the home country of the dwarves of Spearbreakers and the other border fortresses, with its capital, Tathurkeskal, situated somewhere in the southwest parts of West Everoc's Coastal Reaches. It also has holdings in the Coastal Reaches' northwest mountains, where an unnamed Baron tasked with monitoring the rest of the country's nobility resides.

Contents

Much of the nation's history prior to the fall of Syrupleaf is lost, primarily because the dwarves of this nation hailed from East Everoc, which was destroyed by the Holistic Spawn. This means that anything prior to 1PS is effectively forgotten knowlege, and anyone who can remember that far back is often killed under suspicion of being a vampire, unless they're a known lore-keeper.

Much of the country's early history was simply trying to adjust to a new, less threatening world. Although there were goblins and kobolds, the goblins were so primitive they had not yet discovered archery, and the kobolds were in so few numbers they were ignored. The local dwarves were welcoming of new trade partners, while the various human and elvish kingdoms simply treated them as any other dwarf nation that had been there before.

At an unknown time, presumably around the 40s PS, the Vampiric Wars began, and Stemelzarusthuth committed its army to the Global Coalition. As with the majority of the "mortal" races, Stemelzarusthuth was on the side of the victors, though many dwarves were ruined for life by their experiences against the blood drinkers. This would be part of the driving force behind the great border fortresses and other colonization efforts: To remove the more unstable war veterans from the larger population centers. This was more a safety measure than anything however, as their culture views some forms of madness as a sign being favored by the gods.

The beginnings of the border fortress were for a simple reason in a post-war world. Invaders from East Everoc, the spawn of the old tales and survivors, blackened and twisted humans calling themselves Mountain Barbarians had begun encroaching on the Coastal Reaches. These fortresses, such as Spearbreakers, were intended to draw the Spawn and Barbarians out, where the populations were expected to use any means necessary to eradicate these threats. Numerous humans, goblins, and elves were expected to die in the crossfire, and as such they were considered acceptable losses. The ensuing conflicts were further directed at the offending fortresses rather than the nation at large.

Stemelzarusthuth is a surprisingly liberated society for the time. While they do still hold elves in disdain, over time they have grown to tolerate other races and will generally be willing to grant asylum to those seeking it regardless of race, so long as they haven't been known to act against the interests of the country.

Most dwarves speak a mixture of dwarven and Everoc Standard in their day to day lives, with the latter being used more often simply due to habit. Dwarven is used for important events and such, such as declaration of holidays, war, and other such major events in either the country or a dwarf's day-to-day life.

The country's central symbol is a mosquito, and the national colors blue and orange.

It is unknown how large the dwarven nation's army is, though during the height of the Vampiric Wars it likely had close to the order of 100,000 soldiers if not more. The country's primary weapons are axes and pikes, compared to other nations that favor crossbows, spears, and hammers.

187th Merchant Guard Regiment - Tasked with protecting the dwarven caravans going to and from Spearbreakers.

88th Pike Company - Home to several of the founders and the military of Spearbreakers during the Vampiric Wars. The only known survivors of the units since the war's end are Draignean, Fischer, Talvi, and Splint.

47th Pike Company - Fought at The Battle of The Smooth Points of Pride

86th Pike Company - Fought at The Battle of The Smooth Points of Pride

23rd Axe Company - Believed to be the original company of Paintbrushturkey, and fought at The Battle of The Smooth Points of Pride. They were renowned for their organizational stratagems.

Its economy varies from fortress to fortress. For example, Tathurkeskal primarily exports food and metals, while Spearbreakers primarily exports mugs of all kinds and bone trinkets. The country uses gold, silver, and copper coinage, and occasionally platinum. it is also common for fortresses to make commemorative coins from other metals to export to other places.